Mitch McConnell defeats Rick Scott in GOP Senate leadership election


Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will continue to lead GOP senators after winning a secret-ballot leadership election, setting him up to become the longest-serving Senate party leader in American history, CNN reports.
McConnell defeated Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), his first opponent in 15 years, squashing Scott's hopes of unseating the GOP Senate leader. McConnell won the leadership vote 37-10-1 and expressed pride at the election's outcome.
"I don't own this job. Anybody who wants to run for it can feel free to do so," McConnell said at a press conference. "I'm not in any way offended by having an opponent or having a few votes in opposition."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
When asked whether finally having a challenger made him reconsider stepping down after next year, McConnell said, "Look, I'm not going anywhere."
Wednesday's leadership election comes after Scott and several conservative senators called for the vote to be delayed until after the upcoming Georgia runoff election. The delay request underscored mounting frustration among the GOP over the outcome of the 2022 midterm elections. The request failed, though sources say 16 Republican senators voted to delay the leadership elections in a closed-door meeting, per CNN.
Despite losing, Scott says he plans to continue to push the controversial "rescue America" agenda he released earlier this year.
"I will never stop fighting to finally take action to protect Social Security and Medicare and preserve the promise of these programs for our children and grandchildren," Scott said in a statement.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news.
-
July 13 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday's political cartoons include new TSA rules, FEMA cuts, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy complimenting Donald Trump's new wardrobe
-
5 weather-beaten cartoons about the Texas floods
Cartoons Artists take on funding cuts, politicizing tragedy, and more
-
What has the Dalai Lama achieved?
The Explainer Tibet’s exiled spiritual leader has just turned 90, and he has been clarifying his reincarnation plans
-
Iran still has enriched uranium, Israeli official says
Speed Read It remains unclear how long it would take Iran to rebuild its nuclear program following US and Israeli attacks
-
Trump U-turns on weapons to Ukraine
Speed Read Unhappy with Putin, Trump decides the US will go back to arming Ukraine against Russia's attacks
-
Ukraine scrambles as Trump cuts weapons deliveries
Speed Read The halting of weapons shipments was driven by Pentagon policy chief Elbridge Colby, a Ukraine funding skeptic
-
IAEA: Iran could enrich uranium 'within months'
Speed Read The chief United Nations nuclear inspector, Rafael Grossi, says Iran could be enriching uranium again soon
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?
today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
Iran nukes program set back months, early intel suggests
Speed Read A Pentagon assessment says US bombing of Iranian nuclear sites only set the program back by months, not years. This contradicts President Donald Trump's claim.
-
Trump says Iran and Israel agreed to ceasefire
Speed Read This followed a night of Israeli airstrikes on Tehran and multiple waves of missiles fired by Iran
-
Israel strikes Iran, killing military and nuclear chiefs
Speed Read Israeli officials said the attack was a 'preemptive' strike on Iran's nuclear program